Early morning class at eight o’clock. The hot, stuffy classroom had everyone except the teacher feeling drowsy.
Today, Qiongsi Sang wasn’t in class. Qinghua Lu quietly clasped her hands, silently praying the teacher wouldn’t call her name—if Qiongsi Sang was called, to not call her again.
Perhaps the heavens truly heard her sincere prayer because the teacher only called two names this time, neither from their dorm.
Qinghua Lu breathed a sigh of relief, weakly resting her face on the desk, her side glance catching Xie Qiaoqiao’s profile.
Qinghua Lu poked Xie Qiaoqiao’s elbow: “Did you check the dorm group chat?”
Xie Qiaoqiao: “No.”
Qinghua Lu wasn’t surprised, sighed, and said, “Did you know about Qiongsi’s boyfriend cheating?”
Xie Qiaoqiao: “…Huh?”
Seeing Xie Qiaoqiao was clueless, Qinghua Lu finally found an outlet for her gossip: “That stingy medical student, playing both sides, cheated with a girl who already had a boyfriend. Early this morning, the other boyfriend came looking for him and beat him up.”
“The police contacted the dorm’s emergency contact, called Sisi’s phone, so she went there.”
Xie Qiaoqiao blinked, processing the gossip: “169…”
Qinghua Lu sneered, “I always thought that guy was no good, but daring to cheat? That’s brave. Qiongsi is so proud, she might even scratch his face up.”
While chatting, Qinghua Lu kept refreshing the dorm group chat messages.
Because of early class, she hadn’t gone; another roommate, Fang Pan, who had no class, went with Qiongsi Sang to the police station.
There was no news in the group chat, making Qinghua Lu more restless. She finally grabbed Xie Qiaoqiao’s wrist: “Qiaoqiao, why don’t we go to the police station too?”
“What if that stingy guy really assaulted someone? It’s so dangerous with just Fang Pan and Qiongsi, two girls!”
Her tone carried genuine worry mixed with strong curiosity for the unfolding drama.
Going to the police station to watch a scandal was obviously more interesting than attending early class.
Xie Qiaoqiao packed her bag, and the two quietly slid off their chairs, sneaking out the back door.
Fortunately, they sat near the back, making their escape easy.
Outside the classroom building, Qinghua Lu immediately started furiously typing on her phone.
Xie Qiaoqiao glanced and saw Qinghua Lu asking in the dorm group chat what was happening—no one had replied.
Hungry for gossip and worried about the two roommates, Qinghua Lu hopped on her electric bike with Xie Qiaoqiao and sped off to the police station.
Their school was a bit far from the station, crossing several traffic lights.
Though anxious, Qinghua Lu followed traffic rules and stopped at red lights, counting seconds impatiently.
Suddenly, a tall car screeched close past the electric bike, nearly clipping it—Qinghua Lu shouted “Hey!” and frantically pulled her legs up, the bike tipping to the side.
But it didn’t fall; Xie Qiaoqiao, sitting behind, steadied the bike and helped Qinghua Lu regain balance.
Qinghua Lu, now furious, turned and punched the car window: “How the hell do you drive? A rusty Honda like that, do you think you’re a racer?”
The car window slowly rolled down, revealing a guy with sunglasses and a smirking face.
“Oh, don’t be mad, pretty lady, we were just—”
Qinghua Lu’s reflexes were lightning-fast; she reached in and slapped him so hard the sunglasses flew onto the windshield.
The man was stunned. The light turned green. Qinghua Lu twisted the throttle and sped off, making the bike surge forward.
Xie Qiaoqiao brushed the hair off her face, turning away: “This isn’t the way to the police station.”
Qinghua Lu shouted, “Taking a detour! Don’t let that idiot follow us!”
By the time they arrived at the police station, their hair was a mess from the wind.
Xie Qiaoqiao tidied her tangled hair while following Qinghua Lu inside, only to find the station bustling.
Papers flew everywhere.
Two men were grappling on the floor. Fang Pan held a tear-streaked Qiongsi Sang, but Qiongsi Sang was strong and long-legged; even restrained, she kept kicking whoever was near.
Since the two men were tangled up, Qiongsi Sang didn’t even know whom she was kicking—she just kicked anyway.
Qinghua Lu smoothed her bangs, eyes shining, and pulled out her phone: “This was worth coming for. So dramatic.”
The police were busy breaking up the fight and couldn’t pay much attention to Qinghua Lu. She recorded about ten seconds before hastily putting her phone away, fearing police would make her delete it.
Once separated, the two men still hurled insults at each other: one called the other a male homewrecker, the other called him an old man.
Qiongsi Sang, furious, kicked her boyfriend squarely in the crotch.
“How dare you insult others! Pay back the money you spent on our dates! Or I’ll sue you for financial fraud!”
The police were helpless and couldn’t use physical force like with the men to pull Qiongsi Sang away.
Two female officers stepped in, one holding her waist, the other pulling her arm, patiently coaxing her: “Calm down, calm down, it’s not worth it.”
Besides the police, roommates, and the parties involved, Xie Qiaoqiao noticed another familiar face—the young man who had come to deliver an umbrella to Zhang Xueji during the storm.
He was eating a steamed bun with one hand, looking like an innocent bystander caught up in the chaos.
Their eyes met briefly. The young man froze, first confused, then quickly realized.
“Oh—you’re the one from Minsi Building!” Yan Lezhang slapped his thigh, then realized he didn’t know her name.
He quickly introduced himself: “I’m Yan Lezhang, Zhang Xueji’s friend. What’s your name, junior?”
“Xie Qiaoqiao.”
“Oh, Junior Xie.”
Yan Lezhang looked puzzled: “What are you doing at the police station?”
The agitated parties were taken to separate rooms. Both groups introduced themselves and learned from the police the situation:
At 3:25 AM, Tang Qinggu, a freelancer, and Wu Yan, a second-year Clinical Medicine student, entered Qingyun Community’s Unit 7 and met at the entrance.
After a brief conversation, Tang Qinggu realized Wu Yan was the homewrecker who ruined his relationship and, in a fit of rage, attacked him.
Their fight attracted the attention of patrolling security. Unable to stop them, the security called the police.
Qiongsi Sang was Wu Yan’s girlfriend, and Yan Lezhang was Wu Yan’s senior. Both were on Wu Yan’s emergency contacts and received police notifications.
Currently, neither side was willing to reconcile; they fought on sight. Tang Qinggu even threatened to beat Wu Yan to death.
“So you mean, I got cheated on, but I have to pay his bail and convince him not to fight the boyfriend?”
Qiongsi Sang laughed bitterly, arms crossed: “I’m not pressing charges for him spending my money—that’s already generous. Who cares if he dies!”
Yan Lezhang scratched his head, trying to mediate: “I can front the bail money, but this reconciliation might be tough. Wu Yan’s okay, but I think that guy might have some mental issues. You might want to calm him down before he guts my junior like a fish.”
The police sighed inwardly looking at the two separate rooms, but as officers, they held back.
One officer noticed a girl with twin ponytails who had quietly sat down at the front desk, watching the surveillance playback.
The officer quickly approached: “Hey! You can’t just mess with the security footage. This isn’t for public viewing—whose side are you on?”
Qiongsi Sang, still angry, stood and said sternly, “She’s my roommate!”
The officer knocked on the table, pointed toward Qinghua Lu: “Roommate, sit over there with the other girls!”
Xie Qiaoqiao got up slowly and walked over, but her mind was still on what she’d just seen on the monitor: the footage at the apartment entrance clearly recorded Tang Qinggu and Wu Yan’s encounter, conversation, and fight.
She realized she actually knew Tang Qinggu—the man who had furiously knocked on the new neighbor’s door on the 27th floor yesterday and fought with Zhang Xueji before she shoved him into the elevator.
She hadn’t recognized him when he was bruised and battered during the fight with Wu Yan.
The police station door was pushed open again. A flamboyantly dressed man with a swollen half-face strutted in, turning car keys in his hand—bumping into several girls sitting in the waiting area.
He lowered his cracked sunglasses from his nose.
“Damn! Slap girl!”
Qinghua Lu rolled her eyes, itching to slap him again but wary of the police, she turned away.
An officer quickly stepped forward: “Sir, what’s your business here?”
Looking around at the crowded room and police, the man snorted, holding back his anger, slipping his folded sunglasses into his jacket pocket: “I’m Zhou Dongwei, Tang Qinggu’s friend. What’s wrong with you cops? My friend beat the homewrecker—is that a crime? Why are you detaining him?”
“If anyone should be arrested, it’s the homewrecker and the cheating girl, right?”
The officer frowned: “Cheating is a moral issue, but assault is illegal. We called you here hoping you could talk some sense into your friend and deescalate the situation.”
“Dating is about mutual consent; forcing it isn’t sweet. If it doesn’t work out, part ways peacefully. Yelling to beat up the third party isn’t the solution.”
Dongwei grew impatient listening to the lecture—the pale, slim girl who slapped him so hard was practically stronger than his dad, leaving his half-face swollen.
He waved his hand: “Fine, fine, just tell me to mediate. Let me go see him first.”